Tubular buffer element

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a tubular buffer element for use on a rotating drum buffer subassembly of a bowling alley cleaning machine that is characterized by a spirally-wrapped length of cut-pile carpeting wound onto a cardboard tube and stapled thereto at intervals in addition to being circumferentially sewn at each end. The element also is provided with a sawtooth end portion defining foldable V-shaped teeth that can be folded over into coplanar relation with one another and held in clamped relation against the end of the drum by a suitable clamp ring fastener.

United States Patent 1191 Horst June 3, 1975 TUBULAR BUFFER ELEMENT [75] Inventor: Thomas A. Horst, Lafayette, C010.

[73] Assignee: Western Sales and Supply Co.,

Denver, C010.

22 Filed: Jan. 26, 1973 21 Appl.No.:326,762

[52] US. Cl. l5/230.13; 15/230.12; 29/119; 29/127 [51] Int. Cl A471 11/40 [58] Field of Search 15/27, 182, 230.11, 230.12, 15/23013, 230.15, 230.19, 225, 235; 2/66; 29/119, 120, 127, 128, 131; 51/403 1 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 911,889 2/1909 Levett 15/23012 1,266,932 5/1918 Frederick 29/119 UX 1,444,314 2/1923 Herder 29/119 UX 1,522,056 l/1925 Hanson 29/119 UX 1,726,781 9/1929 Uhlig 29/128 2,545,700 3/1951 MacKey 15/27 X mmsumw maa 1,1

2,702,917 3/1955 Lynden 15/230.l1 3,199,919 8/1965 Churchill 15/182 UX 3,318,233 /1967 Curtis 29/119 X 3,728,075 4/1973 Cannan /98 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 8,246 4/1909 United Kingdom 2/66 Primary Examiner-Daniel Blum Attorney, Agent, or FirmEdwin L. Spangler, Jr.

[ 5 7 ABSTRACT This invention relates to a tubular buffer element for use on a rotating drum buffer subassembly of a bowling alley cleaning machine that is characterized by a spirally-wrapped length of cutpile carpeting wound onto a cardboard tube and stapled thereto at intervals in addition to being circumferentially sewn at each end. The element also is provided with a sawtooth end portion defining foldable V-shaped teeth that can be folded over into coplanar relation with one another and held in clamped relation against the end of the drum by a suitable clamp ring fastener.

1 Claim, 4 Drawing Figures TUBULAR BUFFER ELEMENT Bowling alley cleaning and buffing machines of one type or another have been used for many years to maintain the lanes in a condition such that the ball will react properly and predictably as it rolls toward the pins. For the most part, these machines include at least one drum-type rotating buffer that spans the width of the lane and both cleans and polishes the surface thereof as it turns and moves to-and-fro therealong. Unfortunately, the prior art replaceable tubular buffer elements used on the drums have proven to be less than satisfactory for their intended purposes.

To begin with, the prior art tubular buffer elements were oftentimes fabricated from loop carpeting and the loops had a tendency to pick up splinters and tear them loose from the surface of the lane thus leaving unwanted nicks and other imperfections. Ideally, of course, the buffer element should tend to restore the surface to its original condition rather than make it worse.

Of greater significance than the foregoing problem which can be solved rather easily is that of the construction of the prior art buffer elements so as to produce a longitudinally-extending seam going all the way from one end to the other. This seam resulted from fastening a large rectangularpi ecg of carpeting to the surface of a cardboard tube so as to produce a butt jointed longitudinal seam. Such seams cause the drum buffer to vibrate excessively as well as bounce, the latter condition being quite serious as it produces a wavy finish that makes the ball roll erratically. Also, these nap covers are customarily glued in place on the tube and the cleaning solvents used to remove dirt and sediment from the lane surface sometimes dissolve the adhesive thus causing the cover to come loose. Furthermore, the seam had to be held closed with adhesive throughout its length and this has proven to be rather difficult to do.

It has now been found in accordance with the teaching of the instant invention that these and other shortcomings of the prior art buffing tubes can, in large measure, be eliminated by the simple, but unobvious, expedient of taking a long narrow strip of cut pile carpeting and spirally wrapping it on the cardboard core. While adhesives may be used to hold the carpeting on the core, the primary fastening means is the circumferentially stitched seams at opposite ends and a few strategically placed staples; therefore, the cover remains securely attached to the core even in the presence of solvents that are capable of destroying the adhesive bond. The helical joint resulting from the spiral wrap is uniform and eliminates any tendency for the unit to vibrate or bounce as a direct result thereof.

In addition, the problem of securely mounting the tube on the drum of the buffer is simply solved in accordance with the teaching found herein by providing a sawtooth configuration at one end, the teeth of which can be bent over into coplanar relation where they are easily held against the drum end by a suitable clamp ring or the like. Slipping of the buffer on the drum is thus prevented while, at the same time. providing the user with a simple and easy way of mounting and demounting the buffing element.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved buffer element for use on drum-type bowling alley buffing machines.

A second objective is the provision of a buffer element of the type aforementioned that is virtually snagproof so as to resist catching onto splinters and other surface imperfections.

Another object of the within-described invention is to provide a buffer element that eliminates the dependence upon adhesives in favor of reliance upon a few metal fasteners and a pair of circumferentially-sewn seams at opposite ends.

An additional objective to to provide a unit of the type aforementioned that does away with much of the unwanted vibration and bounce associated with the prior art devices for the same purpose due to its spirally-wrapped construction.

Further objects are to provide a buffer element which is inexpensive, rugged, easy to mount and demount, dependable, safe, reliable, versatile and readily adapted for use on most all drum-type buffers.

Other objects will be in part apparent and in part pointed out specifically hereinafter in connection with the description of the drawings that follows, and in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the buffer element;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary diametrical section showing the entire buffer subassembly to an enlarged scale;

FIG. 3 is an end view to the same scale as FIG. 2 showing the plain end of the buffer element; and,

FIG. 4 is an end view to the same scale as FIGS. 2 and 3 showing the sawtooth end.

Referring next to the drawings for a detailed description of the present invention and, initially, to FIG. 2 for this purpose, reference numeral 10 has been chosen to broadly designate the buffer subassembly in its entirety while numeral 12 similarly denotes the drum and numeral 14 the buffer element of the present invention mounted on the latter. The drum 12 comprises a rigid tubular member 16 closed at opposite ends by endcaps 18, only one of which has been shown. An annular flange 20 encircles the skirt 22 of the cap 18 and limits the penetration of the latter into tube 16 as shown. An integrally-formed axial pin 24 projects from the cap and receives the drive coupling 26 which is nonrotatably fastened thereto by set screw 28. This drive coupling is conventional and includes a pair of angularly-spaced ears 30 which fit into suitable sockets in the buffing machine (not shown). Other types of drive couplings can, of course, be substituted for the one shown as they form no part of the present invention nor do they affect its opeation. Further details of the end cap shown will be mentioned presently in connection with the description of the means by which the buffer element is detachably mounted on the drum.

The buffer element 14 is revealed most clearly in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4 to which detailed reference will now be made. It will be seen to include the customary tubular cardboard core 32 built up from successive layers or laminations of spirally-wound strips of paper. Such tubes are well known in the art and they form no part of the present invention other than the rigid tubular supporting structure about which the strip of pile carpet 34 is wrapped and to which it is ultimately fastened.

The carpet strip is of the cut pile type that has no loops to catch and snap on splinters or other imperfections in the lane surface. For purposes of holding the carpet strip in proper position upon the core while it is being wound, the core is preferably coated with a suitable adhesive which neednt necessarily be resistant to the solvents ordinarily employed in cleaning bowling alleys although such adhesives are by no means excluded for obvious reasons. Once the core has been wrapped in spiral fashion to produce a helical butt jointed seam 36 between convolutions, the strip of carpet is stitched to the core at each end with circumferential rows of stitches 38. Also, in the preferred embodiment, a few staples 40 are buried in the nap 42 and pass through both the backing 44 and the tube wall as seen in FIG. 2. If desired, the buffer element can be shoved onto a suitable mandrel (not shown) to crimp the projecting staple ends flat against the inside surface of the core although this refinement is seldom necessary as the core wall itself will usually hold the staples securely even without crimping their ends. Also, the first time the buffer element is passed onto the tubular element 16 of the drum, the staple ends will be crimped over if this hasnt occurred already.

Finally, with reference to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, it can be seen that one end at least of the buffer element is cut to produce a large sawtooth edge 46, the teeth 48 of which are V-shaped and of a length adapted to project beyond the adjacent end of the drum 12. These teeth are designed to be folded inwardly into coplanar relation with one another against the annular recessed shoulder 50 formed on one of the end caps 18. A large washer-like clamp ring 52 with a central opening sized to pass over the drive coupling 26 is held in seated engagement against shoulder 50 by one or more screw fasteners 54. Once the teeth are bent over as shown in FIG. 2 such that they rest against shoulder 50, the

4 clamp ring can be moved into position thereagainst and the screws used to draw same up snug until said teeth are squeezed tightly therebetween. Holes for the screws may have to be punctured in the teeth if the internallythreaded sockets 56 in the cap do not register with a seam between them. As thus clamped onto the drum. the buffer element is neither free to rotate or move axially relative thereto. Similar configurations can be provided on both ends but just one is sufficient. Also, for the sake of simplicity, the helicoidal seams in the core and carpet strip have been shown aligned with one another in FIG. 2 when, in actuality, this will seldom, if ever, occur. Whether these seams line up or not is insignificant because successive layers of the core are laid on in opposite directions anyway.

What is claimed is:

l. The replaceable buffer element for rotating drumtype buffers which comprises: an elongate rigid tubular core sized to fit over the drum; a strip of carpeting wound in spiral fashion onto the core so as to define a helical butt joint between adjacent convolutions; means for attaching the carpeting strip to the core comprising circumferentially stitched seams adjacent each end, said seams each being essentially coplanar and the planes defined thereby lying in substantially normal relation to the core axis, and a sawtooth edge formed in at least one end, said sawtooth edge defining a ring of bendable teeth foldable inwardly into essentially coplanar relation. 

1. The replaceable buffer element for rotating drum-type buffers which comprises: an elongate rigid tubular core sized to fit over the drum; a strip of carpeting wound in spiral fashion onto the core so as to define a helical butt joint between adjacent convolutions; means for attaching the carpeting strip to the core comprising circumferentially stitched seams adjacent each end, said seams each being essentially coplanar and the planes defined thereby lying in substantially normal relation to the core axis, and a sawtooth edge formed in at least one end, said sawtooth edge defining a ring of bendable teeth foldable inwardly into essentially coplanar relation. 